Lists in themselves are not a good thing or a bad thing–they’re arbitrary exercises in ranking “bests” and “worsts” of something, they’re attempts to make sense of the order in which to rank, rate or arrange, to make order out of chaos, if you will.
All of that being said, when NHL.com’s list of the top 10 forwards under 25 did not include Lucas Raymond, even the Red Wings were a bit annoyed by the exclusion; it was not a surprise when Raymond was named to next year’s likely top 20 wingers in the NHL, either.
Now that July has turned to August, the NHL is ranking its best wingers, centers, defensemen and goaltenders over the course of a series of special shows on the NHL Network, and it should come as no surprise to Red Wings fans that one Moritz Seider has also earned a “Maybe Next Year” from the NHL’s “Top 20 defensemen” list:
NHL Network will reveal its list of the top 20 defensemen in the League right now Wednesday when the second of a nine-part series debuts (NHLN, 6 p.m. ET).
While we wait for that much-discussed annual list, NHL.com asked a panel of its writers to identify players who could join the top 20 list next season.
And Moritz Seider? He gets an honorable mention, though it’s in the form of a heartfelt endorsement from Tracey Myers:
Moritz Seider, Detroit Red Wings
I’m surprised this defenseman didn’t make the list this year, but there’s no doubt Seider should be among the top 20 next year. Seider transitioned beautifully from the European to North American game and won the Calder Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL’s top rookie, in 2021-22. Since then he’s just been steady. He’s been steady in points (42-50 points in each of his first four seasons). He’s steadily increasing his minutes (averaged 25:04 ice time per game, first for the Red Wings and eighth among NHL defensemen). Oh, and speaking of steady, Seider has played every game of each season since debuting in the League. That’s pretty impressive. The 24-year-old is building quite a reputation in the League and he’s only going to get better as he continues. — Tracey Myers, staff writer
Continued; I’m afraid that Seider’s utter dependability in terms of his game-to-game performance is what’s going to leave him off a lot of lists both now and in the future.
Seider is a tremendously “steady” defenseman. He’ll get you in the neighborhood of 10 goals and 50 points every season, he’ll play 22-27 minutes per game, he’ll finish in or around the top 10 in blocked shots and hits, and he’ll just be steadily elite in 95% of the games he plays in.
That’s not as exciting for the highlight-reel-makers as a Cale Makar rush or a Lane Hutson shake-and-bake dangle…
And Seider’s utter dominance in terms of the “intangibles” of the game that make him a #1, franchise cornerstone defenseman are the same aspects of his game that are undervalued and under-mentioned by people who seek flash and dash before compiling their “bests.”
For a person who grew up watching Nicklas Lidstrom slowly but surely blossom into one of the most dominant defensemen the game has ever seen by mastering all the little details of hockey that didn’t earn him widespread praise until he kept doing them while the Red Wings won Stanley Cups in his late 20’s and into his 30’s, I see a fair amount of Lidstrom-like tendencies to master the subtleties of hockey in Seider’s game…
And that’s exactly why I don’t think he’s ever going to be appreciated outside of the realm of Detroit Red Wings fandom the way he is treasured within the space thereof.
So Seider will show up every game in which he isn’t missing a limb or confined to a hospital bed, he’ll continue to get better and better at both the big, bombastic aspects of the game and the subtle, important stuff that separates the “great” from the “very good,” he’ll get more and more consistent at bringing his best every night, and the number of Seider jerseys in the crowd and the number of victories attributed in part to Seider’s presence on the ice will have to suffice for those of us who don’t like to see Seider not included on “bests” lists.
